Ready To Lay It All On The Table, Tigers Prepare For The NCAC Championship Meet

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Sean Wolf

The Wittenberg University men's and women's swimming and diving teams have done all they can to prepare. Now it's time to get it done in the biggest meet of each year, the North Coast Athletic Conference championships at C.T. Branin Natatorium in Canton, Ohio.

As always, the Tigers are facing the daunting prospect of competing in the toughest swimming conference in the country. The Kenyon men's and women's squads are the defending champions, with the Lords winning 18 of the 19 NCAC crowns contested and the Ladies winning all 19 previous championships. The Kenyon men are also the 24-time defending national champion, with Denison annually right on their heels. The Kenyon women also have more than 20 national titles to their credit, with Denison the only team to break up the party in the last two decades.

The Tiger men will rely on senior Steve Rader (Concord, Ohio/St. Ignatius) to score significant points. In the past, he has been runner-up in the 100-yard butterfly and the 200-yard Individual Medley, and he is a three-time All-American. Senior Kyle Dunaway (Warren, Ohio/Howland), a team co-captain with Rader, competes in the freestyle and IM events. Senior Alex Berger (Findlay, Ohio/Findlay) is the team's top breaststroker. He met the NCAA cut in the 100 breast as a junior.

Newcomers Sean Wolf (White Lake, Mich./Walled Lake Central) in the distance events and Cody Nicely (Knoxville, Tenn./Bearden) in diving are expected to compete for conference crowns. The Tigers are hoping to improve upon last year's fifth-place finish.

On the women's side, Wittenberg returns just one all-conference performer, but the Tigers have a large number of talented swimmers who have scored points in past championship meets. The team will be shooting for a top-four finish for the third year in a row, likely behind only national top 10 team Kenyon, Denison and Wooster.

Sophomore distance specialist Becca Searcy (Shelbyville, Ky./Shelby County) is having another outstanding season after earning All-NCAC honors and Honorable Mention All-America in 2003, and she is expected to contend in the 400-yard IM and 1650-yard freestyle. Freshman Jenny Mulligan (Cheyney, Pa./Delaware Valley Friends) and sophomore Betany Yeakley (Wilmington, Ohio/Wilmington) are threats in the backstroke events, both with national qualifying times already this season, while sophomore Amy Conner (Noblesville, Ind./Noblesville) earned an NCAA B cut in the breaststroke races in 2003.

Next: 2/11-14 NCAC Championships at Canton, Ohio